SeeAudio Rinko X Z Reviews
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Rinko has many meanings in Kanji, "Rin" means respectful, ethical, dignified or beautiful sound and "Ko" means children or young girl.
Looks like we have a new set from SEE AUDIO and this one is quite unusual compared to their previous releases which are either hybrid or all-balanced armature configurations. To be honest, I'm quite a fan of SEE AUDIO as I owned some of their products like Yume Summer Edition, Yume Midnight and Bravery Limited Edition and my first hybrid set with premium Knowles balanced armature was a SEE AUDIO Yume.
This is SEE AUDIO Rinko, this is SEE AUDIO's second collaboration project, this time from different audio reviewer personality, Zeos Pantera of Z Reviews. It happens that I also did a product review with his collaboration from other audio companies, so let's see what was the concoction tuning result between him and SEE AUDIO.
SEE AUDIO Rinko is a hybrid driver IEM but this one has different driver configuration. It has one 10mm dynamic driver and one 7mm "planar" driver which is not a true planar magnetic but rather a newer type of flat panel type of dynamic driver that mimics some of the properties and working principles of a planar magnetic driver.
The drivers were encapsulated in a composite shell structure made of metal alloy on its face plate and a 3D-printed acrylic resin mould in its cavity base part (probably moulded by HEYGEARS). The overall design of its chassis appears to have a smooth finish to give a comfortable wear to the majority of its users. Like all SEE AUDIO products, it uses a proven 2-pin connector as its interlocking mechanism for its detachable system due to its familiarity and easy to set.
In a similar fashion with other SEE AUDIO products, it has a fairly good stock cable that complements the aesthetic design of the Rinko's shell. It had a twisted 4-core, high-purity silver plated OFC cable with 3.5mm SE termination plug.
As for fitting and comfort, it is quite light and it really sits well on my lugholes without any issues so that I can wear them for long listening sessions. Somehow, it is able to block a decent amount of external noises from the outside surroundings to give me a satisfactory passive noise isolation.
SEE AUDIO is one of the few companies that gives a product presentation and Rinko is no exception that it has a substantial amount of inclusions with eye-pleasing layout.
Here are the following contents inside of Rinko's box:
● a pair of Rinko IEMs
● stock cable
● 3 pairs of Render hybrid eartips in different standard sizes.
● a hard-bound faux leather IEM storage box.
● a round metal pin badge with an illustration of White Rinko.
● a portrait frame of Black and White Rinko.
● PVC contact card.
● Instruction manual.
●** Bonus ** an acrylic stand of White Rinko.
Regarding its amplification and power scaling, Rinko can be driven on normal gain mode but you will notice that it is sort of lacking in its dynamics. But putting it on better sources with more power output makes the Rinko a bit different as you will hear a fuller sounding and even more dynamic that makes me wonder why it behaves like a typical true magnetic planar IEM when it comes to required optimum power output.
As for its tonality, SEE AUDIO Rinko is quite different compared to previous models. This time, it has a V-shaped sound signature where bass and treble frequencies are elevated and more emphasis and noticeable recessed midrange.
LOWS/BASS:
The first observation on the bass response of Rinko is that it is rather punchy and with authoritative slam as both bass parts are quite capable of delivering on such quantity and quality. Though there are some occasional bass bleeding across the lower midrange frequency.
The sub bass seems to dig deep to produce a good rumble from some tracks with synthesisers, drum machines and low tuned guitar. The mid bass has a rather sufficient texture just to give an ample density of notes on bass guitars, bass kick drums and bass baritone vocals. Bass guitars have resonant yet mellow sounding while bass kick drums have a thudding and eerie sound on every hit. Bass-baritones seem to have a dark and dense tone but I noticed that its a bit hollow with less depth on it.
MIDRANGE:
The midrange presentation is undoubtedly recessed and tad leaner but still delivers a clean and expressive response on female vocals and instruments like strings and woodwinds.
I observe that vocals like baritones, tenors and contraltos have lack of depth, texture and heft and it sounds leaner and lethargic compared to the natural tone of these particular vocal types which should have a dusky, rich and smoky tone. But on countertenors and mezzo-sopranos, I'm actually enjoying and quite mesmerising the vocal clarity of certain artists with the likes of King Diamond (Mercyful Fate), Roland Gift (Fine Young Cannibals), Andreas Scholl, Andrea Corr (The Corrs), Sharon Den Adel (Within Temptation) and Cecilia Bartoli as they have an agile, glowing and fiery tone from them. Sopranos seems to perform pretty well on Rinko as it has an energetic and bright voice to give more expressive and passionate vocals as they sound bell-like and shining. I enjoy listening to soprano singers in both modern contemporary and classical operas like Mariah Carey, Tarja Turunen, Diana Damrau and Olga Pereyatko.
On instruments, strings like acoustic guitars have a bright and crisp sound while violins have bright and metallic sound, and then harps have a blurring and splashing tone from them. As for woodwind instruments, flutes and fifes have a bright and penetrating sound, piccolos have bright and intense, although sometimes they are a bit piercing, clarinets have bright and brilliant sound and saxophones have a reedy and forceful sound from them. Other instruments like snare drum and kettledrums have a bright, sharp and dry sound while brasses like horns and trombones have a sharp, metallic and jarring noise. Piano tones appear to have a brighter tone than being warm sounding.
HIGHS/TREBLE:
Overall, Rinko has noticeable boost on upper mids as it gives a crisp and bright vocals and gives an edgier attack on instruments. Although, it is also noted that sibilance is mildly present especially if you play sibilant-laden tracks. Presence range seems to be elevated too as Rinko has good clarity and better rendering on details. There is a decent airy extension with a sufficient amount of harmonics to give an adequate sparkle and shimmer on Rinko as I'm tracking some tracks to test the quality of cymbals.
Cymbals have a shimmering and glistening tone while hi-hats have a sharp, shortened buzzing sound that gives that distinctive chicky sound. Celestas have bright and shimmering tone, and glockenspiels have tad metallic and brilliant sound.
SOUNDSTAGE, IMAGING AND OTHER TECHNICALITIES:
It seems that the overall perceived sound/speaker stage dimension is more average. It has an average width, above average height ceiling and sufficient immersive depth to give me a fairly middling head room within my aural sense.
It presents a typical imaging presentation with a two-dimensional stereo as I was able to locate the positioning of vocals and instruments but not in the most accurate manner. It has decent separation but the layering is rather passable as it was able to stack a two-layered tonal and frequency presentation on which it can playback decently on most cases with the exception of more complex, multi-instrumental tracks.
It looks like there's a good cohesive performance on both drivers as they execute it pretty well. Fast transient speed with good handling on decay on both gives a sense of homogeneity and precision.
As for resolution capabilities, both macro-dynamics and micro-dynamics are quite contrasting as Rinko is able to have ample impact on its note weight although compression of some dynamics is quite noticeable on this one while it has a satisfactory detail retrieval capability for a micro flat panel driver.
PEER COMPARISONS:
CELEST PHOENIXCALL
● Both are of hybrid driver set-up with the exception that PHOENIXCALL have additional balanced armatures for midrange to some parts of treble region to add more detail. It takes a form factor of a modified UIEM-style shell chassis made of acrylic resin. Both have excellent product presentations but PHOENIXCALL has more ear tips to choose from.
● As for tonality, PHOENIXCALL has also V-shaped sonic profile like Rinko which quite more warmer sounding which is more beneficial to all male vocal types and contraltos. As instruments particularly on strings, they sound less natural are they are way too warm that gives a "buttery" and warmer tones on guitars and violins. On treble response, they are quite similar but on upper-mids to presence range, it is way boosted to the point causes shrill, sibilance and strident sound.
● On technical aspect, PHOENIXCALL performs pretty well, as it has decently spacious sound field presentation and better imaging. The rest of the technical capabilities are alike with Rinko's.
CELEST GUMIHO
● Another hybrid set from CELEST, it uses a first generation of "square planar driver" which is another pseudo-planar magnetic driver but with lesser degree of having a full range sound as it has limited frequency range that it needs another type of driver which a balanced armature for supporting other frequencies like midrange and treble. It also has a substantial amount of inclusions albeit Rinko has better ear tips, more extra goodies and better storage case but GUMIHO is way more cheaper with more choices of ear tips to choose from.
● As for its tonality, GUMIHO has a mild U shaped sound sig that makes it more neutral and balanced sounding. It has a tighter and hollowed bass response, a more forward midrange presentation but the strings instruments sounds less appealing as they don't have that bright and crisp tone. Treble response seems to have a rather unevenness as it has borderline sibilance then meagre amount of sparkle and air.
● On technical capabilities, GUMIHO has a wider sound/speaker stage proportion but it has a middling performance on driver performance. And also, "BA timbre" is ever more present as it gives off metallic and tinny sound.
Looks like that SEE AUDIO takes more of an experimental route on this one as they try to adapt modern audio solution technologies like flat panel drivers as they try to get out of its bubble. SEE AUDIO Rinko is the result of this product development and they even enlist a well-known audio reviewer on YouTube to help out its tuning.
And it looks like that Rinko somehow achieve those goals despite of its middling tonal performance. And Rinko appears to starting point of the next generation of SEE AUDIO product line up and its "planar" driver has it potential on the next releases.
If you simply want a fun, engaging and vivid sound quality with good resolution capabilities then Rinko suits your preference.
SEE AUDIO Rinko is now available a HIFIGO, check out the unaffiliated link down below.
★★SEE AUDIO RINKO - HIFIGO★★
SPECIFICATION:
MODEL: SEE AUDIO RINKO
IMPEDANCE: 30Ω
SENSITIVITY: 104dB
FREQUENCY RESPONSE: 20Hz – 20KHz
CABLE LENGTH: 1.2M
PIN TYPE: 2-PIN CONNECTOR (0.78MM)
PLUG TYPE: 3.5mm
DRIVER UNIT(S): (1) DYNAMIC DRIVER + (1) FLAT PANEL DRIVER
Some Tracks Tested: ( * = 16-bit FLAC, ** = 24-bit FLAC, *'* = MQA, '*' = DSD, *'= .WAV)
Alison Krauss -When You Say Nothing At All *
Jade Wiedlin - Blue Kiss**
Led Zeppelin - When The Levee Breaks **
Mountain - Mississippi Queen *
Queen - Killer Queen **
Guns N' Roses - Patience *'*
Eric Clapton - Tears in Heaven '*'
Sergio Mendes- Never Gonna Let You Go '*'
Pearl Jam - Daughter **
Roselia - Hidamari Rhodonite *
Assassin - Fight (To Stop The Tyranny)*
Celtic Frost- Visual Aggression *
New Order - Blue Monday *
The Corrs- What Can I do (unplugged version) *
Jimi Hendrix Experience - Voodoo Child *
The Madness- Buggy Trousers *
Metallica - Motorbreath **
Mariah Carey- Always Be My Baby *
Destiny's Child - Say My Name *
Malice Mizer- Au Revoir *
Mozart - Lacrimosa *
New York Philharmonic Orchestra - Dvorak- Symphony 9 " From the New World." *
Eva Cassidy - Fields of Gold (Sting cover)*
Michael Jackson - Give In To Me *
Exciter - Violence and Force *
Diana Krall - Stop This World **
Debbie Gibson - Foolish Beat *'*
The Sisters of Mercy – Lucretia My Reflection**
Suzanne Vega – Luka **
Lauren Christy – Steep *
Ottoman Mehter - Hucum Marsi *
Diana Damrau - Mozart: Die Zauberflöte*
Type O Negative - Black No.1 *
Felix Ayo - Vivaldi: Presto **
Three Tenors - Nessum Dorma *
Mercyful Fate - Witches' Dance *
P.S.
I am not affiliated to SEE AUDIO nor receive monetary incentives and financial gains as they provide me a review unit for an exchange of factual and sincere feedback from yours truly.
Once again, I would like to send my gratitude to LVY YAN of HIFIGO TEAM for providing this review unit. I truly appreciate their generosity and trust towards me and other reviewers.
Disclaimer
Price(MSRP)
Source(s)
Build Quality
Tonality
Bass
Technicalities
Resolution
Soundstage
Imaging
Conclusion
Non Affiliated Link
Thanks for reading!
- Huge thanks to HiFiGo for providing the opportunity for me to review the Seeaudio Rinko. I really do appreciate it. However, all thoughts and opinions are my own, and are not influenced in any way.
Price(MSRP)
- $99.99
Source(s)
- Jcally JM6 Pro
- Truthear Shio
- Dunu S&S
- Comes with a decent amount of accessories
- IEM.
- Attached to 1 pair of Render silicone memory foam ear tips (M sized)
- Hard case.
- Clamshell type opening mechanism
- Also comes with a button-up strap in the case itself, to button up to cables
- The cable must be thin enough to be buttoned up though.
- 1 Rinko Badge
- Premium selection of ear tips.
- 2 pairs of Render silicone memory foam ear tips (S, L)
- Silver-plated 6N OFC cable
- Quality is decent, soft but tangles a little bit sometimes.
- IEM.
Build Quality
- Plasticky, lightweight shell with matte finish but doesn't feel cheap at all.
- Nozzle width and length is quite average.
- Fit is really good for me. Managed to fit in pretty deep while feeling very comfortable wearing it.
Tonality
- V shaped.
Bass
- Quite balanced between the sub bass and mid bass, both are pretty monstrous in quantity.
- Impactful, punchy, and comes with decent definition and texture.
- Speed is decent enough to keep up with most busy tracks, and decay is a little bit on the slower side.
- However, sub bass extension is quite average, a little less deep and rumbly compared to something like an OH10 but still overall very sufficient.
- Quantity of bass is huge, may even be sufficient for some bass heads!
- However, despite its huge quantity, it isn't completely bleeding into the midrange.
- Midrange is quite recessed, making it quite clean after the initial bleed but also scooped.
- Male vocals are lacking in body, sounding a bit too distant and thin.
- Female vocals on the other hand, is very forward and energetic, but is slightly veiled and shouty to my liking.
- Instruments and timbre is on the cold and thin side. Not the most natural midrange presentation but is decently acceptable for a V shaped signature.
- Overall note weight and density on the lower midrange are thin but gets fuller and thicker as it gets higher.
- Treble is bright and sparkly.
- Initially, I expected the lower treble to be sibilant which extends from the aggressive upper midrange, but the sibilance is much lower than expected. There will still be sibilance but not super offensive.
- Not the smoothest treble as it comes with some mild peaks throughout the treble.
- Treble extension is also decent which adds a little airiness to it.
- Details are alright in the treble, doesn't reveal micro details too much but acceptable.
Technicalities
Resolution
- Resolution and detail retrieval are decent. Nothing outstanding but doesn't fall too short either.
Soundstage
- Soundstage is okay in terms of depth and height but it is rather narrow and intimate in terms of width.
Imaging
- Imaging and accuracy is surprisingly spot on, I am able to tell where the instruments and vocals very well.
- One of the rare case which it has a 3D holographic presentation to me in this price range, which allows me to pinpoint sound with ease.
- Gaming:
- Apex Legends: Gunshots and footsteps can actually be heard very clearly in terms of direction and distance.
- Separation and layering is only average.
- Instruments and vocals are does not have a very clean separation among each other but they don't sound too congested either.
Conclusion
- Based on my impression of Seeaudio IEMs in general, their tuning is usually midrange focused. Therefore, I'm really surprised to see such a V-shaped, bassy take from them.
- Surprisingly, I enjoyed the Rinko quite a bit during my listening sessions, even though I did not have a high expectation from the Rinko.
- As a conclusion, I think the Seeaudio Rinko is a decent V-shaped IEM, with actually pretty impressive bass and really energetic female vocals for $99.
- However, if you're looking for a more midrange focused and neutral signature, with the most natural timbre for the price, I suggest looking for something else.
Non Affiliated Link
- If you would like to purchase one yourself after reading the article, feel free to use the non affiliated link below.
Thanks for reading!
DISCLAIMER:
This set was sent to me by HiFiGo in exchange for an honest review, this agreement in no way includes any monetary or material incentive or compesantion before, during and after this review, and in no way influences my opinion, everything I express in this review are my own thoughts after extensive analysis of this set.
I send a big thank you to HiFiGo for trusting me to do this review.
PACKAGING AND CONTENTS:
The rinko's come in superior quality packaging, with "waifu" illustrations of both versions that honestly give it a feeling of a higher cost product, the contents of the box are ample:
-Capsules
- A silver-plated 4-core 2 pin standard ofc silver cable
-A hard case inspired by jewelry packaging
-3 pairs of render eartips (silicone eartips filled with memory foam)
-A cardboard stand with the cover illustration
- A pin with the illustration of the waifu "angel".
- Warranty papers and manuals
- Additionally a free acrylic stand as a gift
SPECIFICATIONS:
-Sensiytivity: 112dB±1dB
-Impedance: 30Ω.
-Frequency Response Range: 20Hz-20kHz.
-FR QA/QC: ±1dB
-THD: ≤2%.
--Denoise: 26dB
-Driver: 1DD+1PR.
-Plug type: 3.5mm/4.4mm.
-Interface: 2-pin 0.78mm.
-Cable: 6N oxygen-free copper wire 12 cable
FIT AND ISOLATION:
They are very small so I can wear them all day long without feeling any fatigue, regarding the eartips render, they cause me personally an acceptable insertion and block a good amount of external noise.
SOUND
SOURCES:
MEGATRON
FIIO KA3
HIBY R3 PRO SABER
AVANI
ABIGAIL
IKKOLOT MAGIC ARC
TUNNING:
The main feature of these Rinko's is a well-crafted V-signature with a special emphasis on the bass.
BASS:
It is fair to say that it is the highlight of this iem, the performance of it is impressive, as there is not only quantity, there is quantity, it is very well defined, very punchy and fast, there is no annoying reverb, and this itself gets better and better as it scales in the audio source.
The sub bass is deep and dynamic, you feel a good amount of reverb without being overwhelming enough to muddy the soundstage.
The midbass on the other hand is represented in a fast and adequate way, the punch is firm and forceful, it offers a lot of information and this itself gives a lot of character to the track, especially in hiphop, electronic music, and rock you appreciate too much that energetic punch that doesn't become bloat.
MID RANGE:
The vocals have presence and body, although I feel that they are a little behind due to the amount of bass, the female vocals might not be heard clear and rich enough as they should, although to tell the truth this does not ruin the experience, despite not showing the most aerated sound or the most microdetails, I think that in general they have enough body and presence to not be overshadowed by the sub and mid bass.
TREBLE:
The high regions are represented with quite a lot of quality and smoothness, it doesn't become piercing or uncomfortable in any way, it controls the sibilance very well, a song I usually use a lot to test sibilance is Gospel by Dr. Dre and Eminem, a song in which some iem saturate a lot the 8k region causing a notorious and marked sibilance especially in the chorus, these rinko handle it very well, the brass instruments don't either and are actually presented with a very adequate timbre, not "metallic" at all.
TECHNICALITIES:
SOUNSTAGE AND IMAGE:
Perhaps the biggest flaw, it's intimate, doesn't offer a great holographic representation, and the instrumental separation is below what I could expect, despite not congesting itself with complicated tracks, it struggles to resolve them with ease.
NOTE:
After a short time of use, the letters on the faceplate began to disappear with just the touch of my fingers when I removed them from my ears, I would like to point out that they never had contact with any solvent, be it water, alcohol, gasoline, etc.
WHERE TO BUY?:
Here are all the official HiFiGo links where you can buy the RINKOs
Aliexpress
Amazon US
Amazon JP
HiFiGo Web
(NON-AFFILIATED LINKS)
CONCLUSION:
The Rinko's are perhaps the most fun and enjoyable iems I have ever heard, simply amazing the amount of fun they can deliver for this price, the best bass I have ever heard, deep, defined and very clean, to listen to your music and enjoy it all day! without a doubt is a great choice.
This set was sent to me by HiFiGo in exchange for an honest review, this agreement in no way includes any monetary or material incentive or compesantion before, during and after this review, and in no way influences my opinion, everything I express in this review are my own thoughts after extensive analysis of this set.
I send a big thank you to HiFiGo for trusting me to do this review.
PACKAGING AND CONTENTS:
The rinko's come in superior quality packaging, with "waifu" illustrations of both versions that honestly give it a feeling of a higher cost product, the contents of the box are ample:
-Capsules
- A silver-plated 4-core 2 pin standard ofc silver cable
-A hard case inspired by jewelry packaging
-3 pairs of render eartips (silicone eartips filled with memory foam)
-A cardboard stand with the cover illustration
- A pin with the illustration of the waifu "angel".
- Warranty papers and manuals
- Additionally a free acrylic stand as a gift
SPECIFICATIONS:
-Sensiytivity: 112dB±1dB
-Impedance: 30Ω.
-Frequency Response Range: 20Hz-20kHz.
-FR QA/QC: ±1dB
-THD: ≤2%.
--Denoise: 26dB
-Driver: 1DD+1PR.
-Plug type: 3.5mm/4.4mm.
-Interface: 2-pin 0.78mm.
-Cable: 6N oxygen-free copper wire 12 cable
FIT AND ISOLATION:
They are very small so I can wear them all day long without feeling any fatigue, regarding the eartips render, they cause me personally an acceptable insertion and block a good amount of external noise.
SOUND
SOURCES:
MEGATRON
FIIO KA3
HIBY R3 PRO SABER
AVANI
ABIGAIL
IKKOLOT MAGIC ARC
TUNNING:
The main feature of these Rinko's is a well-crafted V-signature with a special emphasis on the bass.
BASS:
It is fair to say that it is the highlight of this iem, the performance of it is impressive, as there is not only quantity, there is quantity, it is very well defined, very punchy and fast, there is no annoying reverb, and this itself gets better and better as it scales in the audio source.
The sub bass is deep and dynamic, you feel a good amount of reverb without being overwhelming enough to muddy the soundstage.
The midbass on the other hand is represented in a fast and adequate way, the punch is firm and forceful, it offers a lot of information and this itself gives a lot of character to the track, especially in hiphop, electronic music, and rock you appreciate too much that energetic punch that doesn't become bloat.
MID RANGE:
The vocals have presence and body, although I feel that they are a little behind due to the amount of bass, the female vocals might not be heard clear and rich enough as they should, although to tell the truth this does not ruin the experience, despite not showing the most aerated sound or the most microdetails, I think that in general they have enough body and presence to not be overshadowed by the sub and mid bass.
TREBLE:
The high regions are represented with quite a lot of quality and smoothness, it doesn't become piercing or uncomfortable in any way, it controls the sibilance very well, a song I usually use a lot to test sibilance is Gospel by Dr. Dre and Eminem, a song in which some iem saturate a lot the 8k region causing a notorious and marked sibilance especially in the chorus, these rinko handle it very well, the brass instruments don't either and are actually presented with a very adequate timbre, not "metallic" at all.
TECHNICALITIES:
SOUNSTAGE AND IMAGE:
Perhaps the biggest flaw, it's intimate, doesn't offer a great holographic representation, and the instrumental separation is below what I could expect, despite not congesting itself with complicated tracks, it struggles to resolve them with ease.
NOTE:
After a short time of use, the letters on the faceplate began to disappear with just the touch of my fingers when I removed them from my ears, I would like to point out that they never had contact with any solvent, be it water, alcohol, gasoline, etc.
WHERE TO BUY?:
Here are all the official HiFiGo links where you can buy the RINKOs
Aliexpress
Amazon US
Amazon JP
HiFiGo Web
(NON-AFFILIATED LINKS)
CONCLUSION:
The Rinko's are perhaps the most fun and enjoyable iems I have ever heard, simply amazing the amount of fun they can deliver for this price, the best bass I have ever heard, deep, defined and very clean, to listen to your music and enjoy it all day! without a doubt is a great choice.
Seeaudio is a company which is kinda new but not unknown, they got a lot of fan with there tuning and value . All the iems are all beautiful and they are always improving on each release for every iem in each different price bracket. They also using waifu theme like moondrop which I don't care for but a lot of people do like that theme apparently 
.I'm old school so I care about technology and sound. My first iem I tried was the yume midnight Collab by see audio and crin and it's a great iem , my second time I got interested in seeaudio release was another Collab this time called rinko which is from zeos which I've been watching on YouTube for a few years now. He's a funny guy and I've bought some of his recommendations. The rinko is using new driver technology of planar and DD which is also being used in high end brand qdc iem called folk s , the price difference is big don't know about sound comparison though as I only have the rinko but am excited to try qdc in future as I've never heard them . People were also doubting that rinko was using planar because of how cheap it was but we got a few people who did teardown and explanation for the driver and how qdc is also using exact driver configuration too. The packaging is nice and small but heavy. Has waifu on front and iem is unique same with excellent build and cable is light and excellent quality, doesnt tangle easily. They are also using unique new foam gel tips which is comfortable and great isolation and sound too.
Sound :
Bass:
The bass on the rinko isn't the biggest baddest bass but can definitely almost hit basshead level depending on recording without being veiled , it's can also sound light and airy and textured depending on track as well. Bass doesn't spill into midrange and stays where it needs to be because DD is being used for bass only . I wouldn't mind more subbass because I love bass .
Midrange:
Mids are the star of the show because of planar tech and it's definitely has naturalness and openess of headphones not iem . It's very 3d and deep as well . It's also very holographic and doesn't have distortion . The vocals have breath too for both male and female and instrument have note weight and tone which you can identify. I can only imagine how awesome this driver combo will be in qdc but at same time I'm loving the tuning of rinko as much as my other expensive iems. These can hang with the big boys.
Treble:
The treble is oh so natural and analogue, it has clarity and openess too with no harshness or artificialness . It's planar treble which is always excellent and they haven't been bad as far as I've heard . I've heard a lot now and it's pretty close to piezo . I don't think anything need to be changed for treble with this tuning of the rinko. It's super natural and can be fun too .
Soundstage/imaging
The soundstage is out of the head with imaging that can be big or close depending on the song and the depth width height are all excellent and inner micro detail is clear as a bell and macro details are excellent as well ..
Conclusion:
At $100 the rinko is an easy recommendation from me seeing it is using driver which is also used in expensive qdc and sound tuning is the one I love as well. It's so easy to get lost in the music that it's hard to concentrate and write or do anything else. Just listen and enjoy and get lost peeps
.
I've added pictures of the teardown as well.
I have bought mine from hifigo.
https://hifigo.com/products/seeaudio-x-z-review-rinko?variant=43831754326255
HiFiGo SeeAudio x Z Reviews Rinko 1 Dynamic Driver+1 Planar Drivers in-Ear Monitors, Hybrid Drivers HiFi IEMs in-Ear Earphones Equipped with Customized Silicone/Foam Ear Tips (Rinko) https://a.co/d/5dGXdUE
.I'm old school so I care about technology and sound. My first iem I tried was the yume midnight Collab by see audio and crin and it's a great iem , my second time I got interested in seeaudio release was another Collab this time called rinko which is from zeos which I've been watching on YouTube for a few years now. He's a funny guy and I've bought some of his recommendations. The rinko is using new driver technology of planar and DD which is also being used in high end brand qdc iem called folk s , the price difference is big don't know about sound comparison though as I only have the rinko but am excited to try qdc in future as I've never heard them . People were also doubting that rinko was using planar because of how cheap it was but we got a few people who did teardown and explanation for the driver and how qdc is also using exact driver configuration too. The packaging is nice and small but heavy. Has waifu on front and iem is unique same with excellent build and cable is light and excellent quality, doesnt tangle easily. They are also using unique new foam gel tips which is comfortable and great isolation and sound too.Sound :
Bass:
The bass on the rinko isn't the biggest baddest bass but can definitely almost hit basshead level depending on recording without being veiled , it's can also sound light and airy and textured depending on track as well. Bass doesn't spill into midrange and stays where it needs to be because DD is being used for bass only . I wouldn't mind more subbass because I love bass .
Midrange:
Mids are the star of the show because of planar tech and it's definitely has naturalness and openess of headphones not iem . It's very 3d and deep as well . It's also very holographic and doesn't have distortion . The vocals have breath too for both male and female and instrument have note weight and tone which you can identify. I can only imagine how awesome this driver combo will be in qdc but at same time I'm loving the tuning of rinko as much as my other expensive iems. These can hang with the big boys.
Treble:
The treble is oh so natural and analogue, it has clarity and openess too with no harshness or artificialness . It's planar treble which is always excellent and they haven't been bad as far as I've heard . I've heard a lot now and it's pretty close to piezo . I don't think anything need to be changed for treble with this tuning of the rinko. It's super natural and can be fun too .
Soundstage/imaging
The soundstage is out of the head with imaging that can be big or close depending on the song and the depth width height are all excellent and inner micro detail is clear as a bell and macro details are excellent as well ..
Conclusion:
At $100 the rinko is an easy recommendation from me seeing it is using driver which is also used in expensive qdc and sound tuning is the one I love as well. It's so easy to get lost in the music that it's hard to concentrate and write or do anything else. Just listen and enjoy and get lost peeps
.I've added pictures of the teardown as well.
I have bought mine from hifigo.
https://hifigo.com/products/seeaudio-x-z-review-rinko?variant=43831754326255
HiFiGo SeeAudio x Z Reviews Rinko 1 Dynamic Driver+1 Planar Drivers in-Ear Monitors, Hybrid Drivers HiFi IEMs in-Ear Earphones Equipped with Customized Silicone/Foam Ear Tips (Rinko) https://a.co/d/5dGXdUE
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★Packaging & content ★
~IEM (3D Printed Shell very lightweight).
~3*render eartips.(blend of silicone and memory foam with foam filled in between the silicone tube and silicone outer layer)
~1*oxygen free silver-plated OFC strands , 0.78mm connectors.
~1*hard case.
★Specification★
~Impedance: 30Ω.
~Sensiytivity: 112dB±1dB
~Frequency Response Range: 20Hz-20kHz.
~FR QA/QC: ±1dB >THD+N: ≤2%.
~Denoise: 26dB
~Driver Configuration: 1DD+1PR.
~Termination: 3.5mm or 4.4mm.
~Connector Interface: 2-pin 0.78mm.
~Cable: 6N oxygen-free copper wire 12 cable
★Sound★
sources:
~Dongle-xduoo link 2 bal
~PC- ifi zen dac + ifi zen can
[Bass]:
The tuning of the bass is definitely one of the dynamic driver kind of sort of bass performance.
It is very commanding, punchy with very solid rumble .
This Rinko will therefore appear particularly suitable for electronic music, rock music, or any other type of vibrant contemporary music.
Even though the Midbass has a lot of presence, rumbles, punch, and everything in between it doesn't dominate any other frequency, especially the subbass or lower midrange.
What I'm trying to say is that it doesn't add any bloat or woolliness to the sound.
I can still clearly hear the subbass region dispersing or transitioning into the decay stage with a very smooth transition as it goes deeper and deeper.
As a result, I would say that the extension for Rinko on bass is definitely quite amazing.
[Mid Range]:
The midrange produces better sound comparing treble.
Indeed, even the bass can't overwhelm the presence of the upper mid reach because of how lively and effective it sounds in the general blend.
Regardless of having this much energy, the vocals aren't that open as they seems.
On the other hand, the instruments can sometimes seems overwhelm the vocals, due to bass centric iem this is.
In terms of presentation, the instruments sound disorganized and the vocals, particularly those of the female singers, lack clarity.
There is no metallic timbre to be heard because the sound itself caves before creating openness or a rich region.
A very thick and primitive sound is produced by the mumbled vocals and muffled instrument sounds.
The midrange as a whole has a sound that is very thick, bouncey, and vague.
[Treble]:
The High pitch reaction is well smooth, it's definite, it's rounded.
It is treble not like Planar, thus a micro planar expression actually makes sense .
The vocal energy feels out of place, and the lower treble also sounds recessed.
The instruments sound relaxed and detailed without sounding metallic, regarding a micro planar , while the vocals seems to have a forward presentation.
Overall, the treble region's presentation is enjoyable & playful.
★Technical Performance★
soundstage isn't that wide but not bad either but for my preference it is a bit narrow .
you will get a feeling of holographic presentation .
with binaural kind of tracks, or even gaming, I was able to hear, cleany the placement of instruments or sound sources, regardless from top, bottom, left, right, anywhere, you name it .
I play FPS game csgo most of the time so enemy position where they are coming from i can have a decent visualization of it .
Imaging is good for its price .
★Tips rolling ★
if you want to minimize bass use any silicone tips ,it will reduce bass thus might be into your likings territory .
Rating:
Bass: 4.5/5
Mids: 3.8/5
Treble: 3.6/5
Imaging/Separation: 3.7/5
Staging: 3.8/5
Dynamics/Speed: 3.7/5
★Conclusion★
Rinko is a fun & bassy IEM with great upper mid energy .
I have to admit that these IEMs are different from what I usually hear, (cause i'm quiet liking neutral tuning ) & their response is different from what I've heard before.
sometimes you need something different in your collection so it is worthy to give it a shot .
In a busycity you might need to relax, cause surrounding you everything seems very loud just plug them into your ears and let the bass mellow your brain .
~IEM (3D Printed Shell very lightweight).
~3*render eartips.(blend of silicone and memory foam with foam filled in between the silicone tube and silicone outer layer)
~1*oxygen free silver-plated OFC strands , 0.78mm connectors.
~1*hard case.
★Specification★
~Impedance: 30Ω.
~Sensiytivity: 112dB±1dB
~Frequency Response Range: 20Hz-20kHz.
~FR QA/QC: ±1dB >THD+N: ≤2%.
~Denoise: 26dB
~Driver Configuration: 1DD+1PR.
~Termination: 3.5mm or 4.4mm.
~Connector Interface: 2-pin 0.78mm.
~Cable: 6N oxygen-free copper wire 12 cable
★Sound★
sources:
~Dongle-xduoo link 2 bal
~PC- ifi zen dac + ifi zen can
[Bass]:
The tuning of the bass is definitely one of the dynamic driver kind of sort of bass performance.
It is very commanding, punchy with very solid rumble .
This Rinko will therefore appear particularly suitable for electronic music, rock music, or any other type of vibrant contemporary music.
Even though the Midbass has a lot of presence, rumbles, punch, and everything in between it doesn't dominate any other frequency, especially the subbass or lower midrange.
What I'm trying to say is that it doesn't add any bloat or woolliness to the sound.
I can still clearly hear the subbass region dispersing or transitioning into the decay stage with a very smooth transition as it goes deeper and deeper.
As a result, I would say that the extension for Rinko on bass is definitely quite amazing.
[Mid Range]:
The midrange produces better sound comparing treble.
Indeed, even the bass can't overwhelm the presence of the upper mid reach because of how lively and effective it sounds in the general blend.
Regardless of having this much energy, the vocals aren't that open as they seems.
On the other hand, the instruments can sometimes seems overwhelm the vocals, due to bass centric iem this is.
In terms of presentation, the instruments sound disorganized and the vocals, particularly those of the female singers, lack clarity.
There is no metallic timbre to be heard because the sound itself caves before creating openness or a rich region.
A very thick and primitive sound is produced by the mumbled vocals and muffled instrument sounds.
The midrange as a whole has a sound that is very thick, bouncey, and vague.
[Treble]:
The High pitch reaction is well smooth, it's definite, it's rounded.
It is treble not like Planar, thus a micro planar expression actually makes sense .
The vocal energy feels out of place, and the lower treble also sounds recessed.
The instruments sound relaxed and detailed without sounding metallic, regarding a micro planar , while the vocals seems to have a forward presentation.
Overall, the treble region's presentation is enjoyable & playful.
★Technical Performance★
soundstage isn't that wide but not bad either but for my preference it is a bit narrow .
you will get a feeling of holographic presentation .
with binaural kind of tracks, or even gaming, I was able to hear, cleany the placement of instruments or sound sources, regardless from top, bottom, left, right, anywhere, you name it .
I play FPS game csgo most of the time so enemy position where they are coming from i can have a decent visualization of it .
Imaging is good for its price .
★Tips rolling ★
if you want to minimize bass use any silicone tips ,it will reduce bass thus might be into your likings territory .
Rating:
Bass: 4.5/5
Mids: 3.8/5
Treble: 3.6/5
Imaging/Separation: 3.7/5
Staging: 3.8/5
Dynamics/Speed: 3.7/5
★Conclusion★
Rinko is a fun & bassy IEM with great upper mid energy .
I have to admit that these IEMs are different from what I usually hear, (cause i'm quiet liking neutral tuning ) & their response is different from what I've heard before.
sometimes you need something different in your collection so it is worthy to give it a shot .
In a busycity you might need to relax, cause surrounding you everything seems very loud just plug them into your ears and let the bass mellow your brain .
Design
When I unboxed Rinko, my first thought was how much it resembled the Truthear HEXA. The aluminium faceplates and translucent 3D-printed resin shells share a similar matte black finish and feel.The slim shells are not only aesthetically pleasing but also exceptionally comfortable. However, they offer little passive noise isolation. Rinko features standard 0.78mm 2-pin sockets, aluminium nozzles, and a single vent on the rear side.
Included with Rinko is a twisted oxygen-free copper cable. The straight plug and Y-splitter boast a polished aluminium design, while the chin slider and connector housings are made of clear plastic. Although the cable feels somewhat generic, it performs well, despite having a slight memory effect.
Verdict
In summary, the SeeAudio x Z Reviews Rinko IEM offers a unique sound signature with its emphasized bass and lifted upper midrange. It delivers a bold and intense listening experience. However, the recessed lower mids impact vocal intelligibility. The lower treble region provides clarity, but the subsequent dip limits the presence of harmonics and fine details.While Rinko performs reasonably well, there are numerous other options available in the market that offer better overall performance. There are more compelling alternatives but the waifus alone might be enough to make you pull the trigger on this one.
Disclosure:
In regards to the See Audio Rinko driver speculation, I was contacted by HiFiGo.
“Rinko’s 6mm driver is a newly patented planar, try it yourself, we are happy and open for a third party audit“
So I kindly accepted that third party appraisal offer.
Here we go.
Intro:
*Knock* *Knock*
—Who?
Rinkos: 「Planar and Dynamic delivery service」
Me: 「Ok, come in.」
Chapter 0.
SeeAudio Rinko controversy —the background
—About SeeAudio
Most of us would have already known who SeeAudio is, a relatively young IEM brand that initially caught public attention by Yume, Bravery, with their highend Neo, Kaguya being flagship and over the years the company has established itself firmly in the international audiophile community.
—qdc, is that you?
There is a rumor that SeeAudio was started by ex-qdc engineers and I personally get that rumor because their tuning is in qdc’s blood.
... I should also clarify that I am an avid fan of qdc tuning and rate the SeeAudio Bravery (with aftermarket re-cabling and ear tip changes) as one of the endgame IEMs for female vocals. 10BA, 14BA, EST, all couldn’t produce what I refer “fragile and translucent“ timbre that Bravery is capable of. Its tone resonates in your brain as pleasantly as the light sound made when you lightly tap your finger on a wine glass.
Anyway! My personal recommendation aside.
Chapter 1.
SeeAudio Rinko controversy —the Driver speculations
By now many of us may know there was a series of dramas surrounding Rinko‘s driver.
The driver of Rinko didn’t look like conventional Planar Magnetic Driver that we see on, say, 7Hz Timeless or Tangzu Wu Zetian.
It is referred as “6mm Micro Planar Magnetic Driver (MPMD hereunder)” and this specific driver brought a series of discussions over the internet about whether 6mm MPMD is a legitimate Planar or not.
Amidst the buzz on the Internet, Rinko seems to have attracted more attention than expected.
As we all know there's no denying that internet flame wars have an intriguing and entertaining aspect to them.
As it stands, HiFiGo's disclosure of the MPMD patent information obtained from SeeAudio's design, as well as the release of new disassembled images of several Rinko drivers, seems to have put the confusion to rest and put the situation to rest.
My understanding is that the "Micro Planar Magnetic Driver" is a new type of Planar Driver that "specializes in a specific frequency band" and I actually realized how good it is when Rinko's sound was tested.
So here comes Rinko.
Chapter 2.
SeeAudio Rinko sound, is it a dynamic or planar sound?
Before we step into the sound, I guess it is noteworthy to show this carrying case.
Wow! Looks like an engagement ring case, that’s quite a good job selecting case from various candidates, I value carrying case with significant weight in decision making because it ultimately comes to “if carrying case is bad looking it’s not worth as gift candidates especially if you are gifting to your wife or girlfriend”.
Anyway, back to sound.
—Tuning
Frequency Response Chart
Both Rinko and Tangzu x SeeAudio Encounter shares very similar take on basic tuning philosophy.
Both IEMs are tuned for the following characteristics
▶︎ Wide staging feel
▶︎ Extremely careful sibilance dip
▶︎ Emphasis on upper mids for forward projection of vocals and sound image.
▶︎12kHz and 16kHz diffusion field border articulation and air generation.
Encounter maintains a relatively neutral bass range and improves tonal balance on acoustics, while Rinko emphasizes the lower midrange and creates musical excitement in digital genres.
—A million dollar question and my main reason to be called in auditioning Rinko
️Is it Planar or Dynamic?
To my ear, Rinko’s timbre is a hybrid of Dynamic and Planar with following structure:
Bass : Dynamic
Mid : Dynamic
Treble : Planar
Certainly there is a hint of planar in Rinko's upper register, but compared to a full planar like 7Hz Timeless, I would say that 70% of the timbre is derived by dynamic and 30% by planar.
7:3 dynamic : planar
Immediately after unboxing, there was a rough texture like that of piezoelectric, but after about 8 hours of aging, the roughness was smoothed out.
As a result, compared to the piezoelectric, the sound image localization is significantly more recognizable as Planar, with a unique sound pressure and resolution.
For the tonality per se, Rinko has a strong dynamic impression overall, and the planar is effective only in articulating details and expressing a sense of air and finesse.
Thus, Rinko in a sense is “dynamic-like sounding” yet “has traits of Planar timbre in upper registers”.
This is why I mentioned above that Rinko’s "Micro Planar Magnetic Driver" is a new type of Planar Driver that "specializes in a specific frequency band". It is treble only Planar, a micro planar expression actually makes sense to me now.
Now, I think I have fulfilled my role as an inspector with the above comments.
I would like to continue with the review as usual.
—Timbre Impression : Sound Tasting
Following the manner of expression in perfumery and wine tasting, the components of the sound are described below.
Top Notes: Clarity, rounded, soft contours.
Heart Note: Densely textured, with a solid presence in the upper register
Bottom Note: Overall thickness of sound, authoritative sub-bass
— 6mm MPMD’s forte
Although Rinko's finesse expression is supposed to be the timbre of the brand-new 6mm MPMD, the fact that one can feel a clear and distinct line in the core of the sound is a melancholy that is fundamentally similar to the UE TF10Pro, which I once loved and bought four of in total.
Yes, that Triple.fi 10 Pro of Once the mighty Ultimate Ears.
—Final impression score (based on my HRTF)
Overall | A-
Tonality | B+
Resolution | A
Overall Coherence | B
Moondrop Droplet (A-) | Audiosense DT200 (A-) | Audiosense AQ4 (A-) | Simgot EA500 (A-) | DUNU Titan S (A-) | JUZEAR A41T (A-) | Truthear HEXA (85/100: A) l AFUL P5 (A) | Blessing 2 (84/100: A) | Blessing 2 Dusk (85/100: A) | Mangird Tea (84/100: A) | AKG N5005 (A-) | See Audio Bravery (A)
My higher than A-rated:
Audio Lokahi (A+) | Blessing 3 (A+) | Sound Rhyme SR5 (A+) | Westone W80 (A+) | Tangzu Wu Zetian (A+) | 7Hz Timeless (A+) | DUNU SA6 (S-) | Moondrop Variations (S-) | Softears RSV (S-) | Thieaudio Monarch (S-) | SoundRhyme DTE500 (S) | Aur Audio Neon Pro (S) | UM MEST MKII (S) | qdc Anole VX (S+) | SoundRhyme SR8 (S+)
In regards to the See Audio Rinko driver speculation, I was contacted by HiFiGo.
“Rinko’s 6mm driver is a newly patented planar, try it yourself, we are happy and open for a third party audit“
So I kindly accepted that third party appraisal offer.
Here we go.
Intro:
*Knock* *Knock*
—Who?
Rinkos: 「Planar and Dynamic delivery service」
Me: 「Ok, come in.」
Chapter 0.
SeeAudio Rinko controversy —the background
—About SeeAudio
Most of us would have already known who SeeAudio is, a relatively young IEM brand that initially caught public attention by Yume, Bravery, with their highend Neo, Kaguya being flagship and over the years the company has established itself firmly in the international audiophile community.
—qdc, is that you?
There is a rumor that SeeAudio was started by ex-qdc engineers and I personally get that rumor because their tuning is in qdc’s blood.
... I should also clarify that I am an avid fan of qdc tuning and rate the SeeAudio Bravery (with aftermarket re-cabling and ear tip changes) as one of the endgame IEMs for female vocals. 10BA, 14BA, EST, all couldn’t produce what I refer “fragile and translucent“ timbre that Bravery is capable of. Its tone resonates in your brain as pleasantly as the light sound made when you lightly tap your finger on a wine glass.
Anyway! My personal recommendation aside.
Chapter 1.
SeeAudio Rinko controversy —the Driver speculations
By now many of us may know there was a series of dramas surrounding Rinko‘s driver.
The driver of Rinko didn’t look like conventional Planar Magnetic Driver that we see on, say, 7Hz Timeless or Tangzu Wu Zetian.
It is referred as “6mm Micro Planar Magnetic Driver (MPMD hereunder)” and this specific driver brought a series of discussions over the internet about whether 6mm MPMD is a legitimate Planar or not.
Amidst the buzz on the Internet, Rinko seems to have attracted more attention than expected.
As we all know there's no denying that internet flame wars have an intriguing and entertaining aspect to them.
As it stands, HiFiGo's disclosure of the MPMD patent information obtained from SeeAudio's design, as well as the release of new disassembled images of several Rinko drivers, seems to have put the confusion to rest and put the situation to rest.
My understanding is that the "Micro Planar Magnetic Driver" is a new type of Planar Driver that "specializes in a specific frequency band" and I actually realized how good it is when Rinko's sound was tested.
So here comes Rinko.
Chapter 2.
SeeAudio Rinko sound, is it a dynamic or planar sound?
Before we step into the sound, I guess it is noteworthy to show this carrying case.
Wow! Looks like an engagement ring case, that’s quite a good job selecting case from various candidates, I value carrying case with significant weight in decision making because it ultimately comes to “if carrying case is bad looking it’s not worth as gift candidates especially if you are gifting to your wife or girlfriend”.
Anyway, back to sound.
—Tuning
Frequency Response Chart
Both Rinko and Tangzu x SeeAudio Encounter shares very similar take on basic tuning philosophy.
Both IEMs are tuned for the following characteristics
▶︎ Wide staging feel
▶︎ Extremely careful sibilance dip
▶︎ Emphasis on upper mids for forward projection of vocals and sound image.
▶︎12kHz and 16kHz diffusion field border articulation and air generation.
Encounter maintains a relatively neutral bass range and improves tonal balance on acoustics, while Rinko emphasizes the lower midrange and creates musical excitement in digital genres.
—A million dollar question and my main reason to be called in auditioning Rinko
️Is it Planar or Dynamic?To my ear, Rinko’s timbre is a hybrid of Dynamic and Planar with following structure:
Bass : Dynamic
Mid : Dynamic
Treble : Planar
Certainly there is a hint of planar in Rinko's upper register, but compared to a full planar like 7Hz Timeless, I would say that 70% of the timbre is derived by dynamic and 30% by planar.
7:3 dynamic : planar
Immediately after unboxing, there was a rough texture like that of piezoelectric, but after about 8 hours of aging, the roughness was smoothed out.
As a result, compared to the piezoelectric, the sound image localization is significantly more recognizable as Planar, with a unique sound pressure and resolution.
For the tonality per se, Rinko has a strong dynamic impression overall, and the planar is effective only in articulating details and expressing a sense of air and finesse.
Thus, Rinko in a sense is “dynamic-like sounding” yet “has traits of Planar timbre in upper registers”.
This is why I mentioned above that Rinko’s "Micro Planar Magnetic Driver" is a new type of Planar Driver that "specializes in a specific frequency band". It is treble only Planar, a micro planar expression actually makes sense to me now.
Now, I think I have fulfilled my role as an inspector with the above comments.
I would like to continue with the review as usual.
—Timbre Impression : Sound Tasting
Following the manner of expression in perfumery and wine tasting, the components of the sound are described below.
Top Notes: Clarity, rounded, soft contours.
Heart Note: Densely textured, with a solid presence in the upper register
Bottom Note: Overall thickness of sound, authoritative sub-bass
— 6mm MPMD’s forte
Although Rinko's finesse expression is supposed to be the timbre of the brand-new 6mm MPMD, the fact that one can feel a clear and distinct line in the core of the sound is a melancholy that is fundamentally similar to the UE TF10Pro, which I once loved and bought four of in total.
Yes, that Triple.fi 10 Pro of Once the mighty Ultimate Ears.
—Final impression score (based on my HRTF)
Overall | A-
Tonality | B+
Resolution | A
Overall Coherence | B
- Diffusion Field coherence | B
- Image coordinate positioning coherence | B
- Image Focusing Coherence | C+
- Sound wave momentum & Sound Image vectoring coherence | A
Moondrop Droplet (A-) | Audiosense DT200 (A-) | Audiosense AQ4 (A-) | Simgot EA500 (A-) | DUNU Titan S (A-) | JUZEAR A41T (A-) | Truthear HEXA (85/100: A) l AFUL P5 (A) | Blessing 2 (84/100: A) | Blessing 2 Dusk (85/100: A) | Mangird Tea (84/100: A) | AKG N5005 (A-) | See Audio Bravery (A)
My higher than A-rated:
Audio Lokahi (A+) | Blessing 3 (A+) | Sound Rhyme SR5 (A+) | Westone W80 (A+) | Tangzu Wu Zetian (A+) | 7Hz Timeless (A+) | DUNU SA6 (S-) | Moondrop Variations (S-) | Softears RSV (S-) | Thieaudio Monarch (S-) | SoundRhyme DTE500 (S) | Aur Audio Neon Pro (S) | UM MEST MKII (S) | qdc Anole VX (S+) | SoundRhyme SR8 (S+)
o0genesis0o
Good review mate! It’s great that you decide to post full review.
AmericanSpirit
@o0genesis0o Thanks bro!
Review Of The Seeaduio x Z Reviews Rinko
Introduction
Since many of Seeaudio's in-ear monitors (IEMs) have received high praise for their performance, the company has a large following among audiophiles. The Yume siblings—the original and the midnight edition—are two of the many IEMs they have released that I like. I've reviewed Yume Midnight before, but today I'll be talking about their latest release, Rinko, which is the result of a collaboration between the well-known YouTuber Zeos Pantera and SeeAudio. But let's go over a few things I want to make clear before continuing with the review.
Disclaimer
*Since this unit tour was organised by the wonderful people at Hifigo, I am grateful to them. And as I've said in all of my evaluations, the same is true for this one: all of the concepts I've expressed below are entirely my own, original ideas that haven't been influenced by anyone else. If interested, go to this link.
*I am not associated with the connection, and I receive no financial assistance from anyone.
*For the remainder of the review, I will refer to these IEMs as "Rinko."
*I am using different Ear-tips for convenience and better versatility.
*Finally, I will only evaluate the Rinko based on their performance, even though I will explain how it feels and seems physically and aesthetically.
*As a reviewer who prioritises sound over all else, I dare not care about recent conflicts with the real story behind the Rinko. Instead, I'll do my best to focus on how they perform rather than the strategies used or the reasons why misunderstandings occurred.
Specification
A 6mm micro planar driver and a dynamic driver are used in the hybrid driver configuration of the Rinko. The shells are made of high-quality materials and are lightweight but very rigid. The shells are the ideal size for my ears and prevent ear fatigue during extended listening sessions. The cable has four silver-plated OFC strands, a 0.78mm connection for the IEM, and a straight 3.5mm termination plug on the other end. Three pairs of ear tips in various sizes, a cable, and a carrying case are included as IEM accessories. Technical details include a 30 Ohm impedance and a 112 dB sensitivity. 20Hz to 20kHz is the range of the frequency response.
Sound
According to what I have heard, the Rinko sounds strange and very different from what I have always heard, but it hasn't stopped me from learning it because the tuning is very much V-shaped with a focus on the upper midrange and the bass region. I describe it as odd because the tuning is off for me; the treble tries to sound expansive, but it doesn't perform as one would anticipate; there is some positive energy, but it sounds dishonest to my ears, which is contrary to how I typically hear music. And even though the upper mid range has a lot of energy, it doesn't sound in the slightest bit peaky or bright. It doesn't let the mid range down, in fact, the upper mid range sounds soft as a result of this influence, in my opinion. The bass sounds booming and punchy at the same time with a lot of presence in the overall mix. All I'm trying to say is that, despite appearing to be tuned differently, the V-shape signature still sounds the same. Let's investigate the sound more in depth.
Treble
The treble region's energy is quite playful, as it can sometimes sound very intimate with high energy when listening to rock or pop tracks, and it can also sound expansive when listening to quiet tracks. With complex tracks, the upper treble loses its extension but still sounds wide. Although they appear tainted and rough due to the lack of details and texture, they do feel rounded and bold when combined. The vocals and instruments are mixed well, but even though the vocals extend well into the upper treble, they still feel unfinished. The same is true of the instruments, as sometimes the cymbal crashes sound expressive while the snare hits are unimportant. Listening to these gives the impression that the sparkle usually stays in this area. The vocals struggle to keep up while maintaining their distinctive characteristics. The energy feels out of place, and the lower treble also sounds strange. The instruments sound relaxed and detailed without sounding metallic, while the vocals have a front and expressive response in the mix. Overall, the treble region's presentation is enjoyable, enjoyable, and playful.
Mid Range
The midrange sounds better than the treble because it is more familiar and relatable. To be completely honest, the upper mid range region continues to hold the majority of the energy. Even the bass cannot overpower the presence of the upper mid range due to how energetic and impactful it sounds in the overall mix. Despite having this much energy, the vocals aren't as expressive as I had hoped given how forward they are. The vocals, on the other hand, are sometimes overpowered by the instruments, which has the effect of holding them back. In terms of presentation, the vocals, particularly those of the female singers, lack clarity and sound blunt, and the instruments sound disorganised. Since the sound itself caves before producing openness or a rich region, no metallic timbre can be heard. As the vocals and the instruments lack personality and sound drowned out and very dull, the lower mid range is mellow and relaxed. To be honest, the presence of bass greatly muffles the sound in this area. The mumbled vocals and muffled sound of the instruments create a very thick and primitive sound. Overall, the mid range has a very thick, bouncy, and vague sound.
Bass
Whether it is the sub bass or the mid bass, the bass is overwhelmingly present in the overall mix. Due to its prominence in the mix, the bass has a significant impact. The deep sub bass is the focus, but there is also a lot of mid bass in the mix, which bleeds into the mid range and essentially masks the lower mid range as well as taming the erratic energy in the treble region with some influence over the upper mid range. Even though the upper range seems more accessible, the bass actually occupies a significant amount of the mix. While the mid bass region is where the slams and boomier presentation hits greatly, the sub bass region sounds impactful with punches and gives a good sensation of rumble. The bass line is thick and has an organic feel to it. Although the bass's expression of the details or texture is poor. Despite the overwhelming amount of bass, it doesn't live up to my expectations in terms of quality. The bass hits hard but resolves poorly, sounding like it has no control over it. Overall, the bass region sounds boomy, punchy, and scattered throughout the overall mix.
Technical Performance
The Rinko is an average sounding IEM in terms of technical performance; the stage is large, the imaging could be better, the separation is hardly perceptible, the details aren't particularly forthcoming, and the resolving speed is sufficient to maintain the mix's flow.
Soundstage, Sound Imaging & Separation
Even though the positioning isn't particularly good, the soundstage is wide enough to sound quite spacious. The imaging could be sharper and better with overall clarity, which would make it more enjoyable. The separation is barely discernible because there isn't enough room for the components to breathe while still being distinct enough to identify their sources. However, it hardly prevents it from being messed up.
Speed & Resolution
The resolution is also not fully appreciated because the details are hesitant to come forward and are not very exploitative in nature. Even though the deacy is not as good as I had hoped for, the notes attack quickly enough for a tidy presentation.
Sound Impressions
Sources
Tempotec V6 - The Rinko sounded much better and cleaner when paired with the V6, with more clarity in the treble and lower midrange. Although the upper mid range felt a little muted and the bass remained unchanged. The resolution and imaging felt better, but the technical experts felt the same. Compared to other pairings I tried, the V6 pairing felt much better.
iFI Hipdac - When used with the Hipdac, the Rinko produced a bassier and murkier sound. The upper mid range and treble were slightly more subdued. To be completely honest, the entire response sounded friendly and lively. The details felt the same because none of the other characteristics or the specifics had changed. The Hipdac pairing was also entertaining to listen to.
Tracks Used
Luna Haruna - Glory days
Luna Haruna - Overfly
Rokudenashi - The Flame of Love
LMYK - 0 (zero)
ORESKABAND - Jitensya
Marina Horiuchi - Mizukagami no Sekai
RADWIMPS - Suzume
Indila - Love Story
Indila - Tourner dans le vide
Earth, Wind & Fire - September
Tom Petty - Free Fallin'
Fleetwood Mac - Everywhere
Nirvana - Smells Like Teen Spirit
Blue Oyester Cult - (Don't Fear) The Reaper
Guns 'N' Roses - Sweet Child O' Mine
The Police - Every Breath You Take
Gojira - Amazonia
TV on the radio - Wolf Like Me
Bring Me To The Horizon - Can You Feel My Heart
Bring Me To The Horizon - sTraNgeRs
Avril Lavigne - Dare To Love Me
Travis - Love Will Come Through
Gotye - Somebody That I Used To Know
DJ Shadows - Six Days (Remix) [feat. Mos Def]
Lady Gaga - Just Dance
Lil Wayne - Lollipop
Flo Rida - Low
Sebastian Lopez & Flug - Electronic Measures
Federico Mecozzi - Blue (Da Ba Dee)
Wayve - Not Enough
Kai Wachi & TeZATalks - Ghost
NGHTMRE, Zeds Dead & Tori Levett - Shady Intentions
Zeds Dead, DNMO & GG Magree - Save My Grave
Skrillex, Noisia, josh pan & Dylan Brady - Supersonic
Skrillex & Nai Barghouti - Xena
Skrillex, Missy Elliott & Mr. Oizo - RATATA
Kaifi Khalil, Eva B & Wahab Bugti - Kana Yaari
A.R. Rahman, Javed Ali & Mohit Chauhan - Kun Faya Kun
Conclusion
Rinko is a fun and bassy IEM with good upper mid range energy, which makes it sound exciting and fun to listen to, to conclude this review. I must admit that these IEMs are different from what I typically hear, and the response they produce has a distinctive characteristic compared to the others I have listened to, which begs the question of whether or not they are worth the price. Therefore, in my opinion, one should first try it.
2023 is all about collaborations, we are just three-four months in and we have already got so many collaboration products. Just a few days back I completed my review for the See Audio x Tangzu Audio Shimin Li Encounter Edition, a collaborative project between See Audio and Tangzu Audio. Today, I am going to bring a review for another See Audio collaboration, the See Audio x Z Reviews Rinko. Rinko is actually the talk of the town currently mainly because of a driver-related controversy that’s going around. Basically, things are going around about the verification of its planar driver unit. People are talking and engaging in a lot of discussions over this, and that got me curious to do a teardown myself. Hifigo has also posted a teardown that shows the internals which has increased my curiosity even further. So, I have joined hands with a friend of mine to tear down my unit as well. I will be adding a teardown section later in this review, but first, let’s find out more about the Rinko design, build, and sound!!
A Short Disclaimer Before I Begin:
The See Audio x Z Reviews Rinko was sent to me as a review sample from HiFiGo. There is no monetary benefit involved in this review, I would like to thank HiFiGo for providing me with this sample unit. I have enjoyed a good two-week period with the set, and now the set is actually not working for me as I messed up during the tear down(actually broke the planar shell for the left side driver unit). But the teardown and my review are complete that’s the good thing here. At the time of this writeup the unit retails for 99.99$, you can go and check out more information on the HiFiGo page below(It’s a non-affiliated link).
https://hifigo.com/products/seeaudio-x-z-review-rinko
About See Audio x Z Reviews Rinko:-
As I mentioned above, Rinko is a collaboration between See Audio and Z Reviews. It’s a dual-driver hybrid set of IEMs featuring a dynamic driver and a micro planar driver unit as advertised by the brand. The pair has attractive pricing and comes with a beautiful waifu designer box package. That’s almost everything that everyone knows now, let’s begin directly with the unboxing experience for the set.
Unboxing The Rinko:-
See Audio makes good packages for their IEMs. I was so in love with their Yume II package design, it looked so beautiful. The Package of Rinko has a designer look with waifu design right on the slip-on cover. On the back, we have the technical details and another image of the waifu. They have named this waifu Rinko(as evident from their keycap set as well). I have also got a stander of Rinko, which is a good-looking designer item(my wife has already called her dibs on this stander). Inside we have everything we need to get going including the pair itself, a 3.5mm terminated 2-pin cable, three pairs of new silicone-foam hybrid ear tips, a carry case, and a user guide. There’s also a cardboard-style stander inside the package with the Rinko waifu image exactly as we have on the front of the slip-on cover. Too much waifu in the package!!! But overall a good experience for unboxing a 100$ set. The new Eartips are quite good, will share more about them in the design and build quality part.
Package Contents:-
>Rinko IEMs.
>3.5mm terminated 2-pin cable.
>Three pairs of New Render Ear tips.
>Carry Case.
>Cardboard stander.
>User Guide.
Design & Build Quality:-
The pair is pretty well-built. It has a unique 3D beveled shape with metallic face covers. The inner cavity reminds me of Moondrop Variations with its semi-translucent black-colored look. We have Zeos engraved on the side of both earpieces. The pair looks and feels amazing in hand. Rinko has a single air vent present right underneath the Zeos engraving on the side. The pair has a lightweight design, it sits firmly into my ears and serves me well with a comfortable fit and good isolation.
The included cable is a generic stock cable. It’s soft, has 2-pin connectors, and has a 3.5mm termination. Rinko comes with new Render Ear Tips. They are a blend of silicone and memory foam with foam filled in between the silicone tube and silicone outer layer. They are quite good and I personally like them with the Rinko.
Driving The Rinko:-
Rinko is an easy-to-drive pair, it works well enough straight out of my Sony WM1A. Heck, it’s so easy to power that it works well with my PS5 controller as well. I have used the pair extensively for gaming with my PS5. So don’t worry about driving the set, it works well off with basic sources.
Sound Impressions:-
Rinko packs a powerful and fun sound signature. It has a strong lower-end response, delivering a powerful sub-bass rumble and a strong mid-bass response. It is borderline basshead for my taste and that’s why I find it perfect for watching movies and enjoying some video games. I hooked it into my PS5 and was literally amazed by its outstanding theatrical sound feeling. It benefits from the surround sound of the PS5 and delivers an expansive soundstage with crisp bass. Lower-end is probably the highlight of the set for me. The bass is so strong that it sometimes comes over the lower mids as well, Upper mids sound clean and accurate. They have crisp clarity for vocals and instruments. Treble is also nicely done on the Rinko, it sounds clean and sibilance free.
Lower-End:-
As mentioned earlier, the Rinko has an emphasized lower-end response. It has a fast, quick, punchy lower-end response that complements genres such as hip-hop, EDM, etc. The lower-end clarity is quite refined and well-textured. Love the rumble it produces while watching movies and playing games. Personally loved watching Interstellar, the bgm sounded so lively and created a different aura with its strong lower end. I must add, this is the borderline bass response I can enjoy, anything above this would be overwhelming atleast for me.
Midrange:-
Even though the strong mid-bass reaches for the lower mids every now and then, the pair maintains a clean midrange most of the time. The instruments are well-separated, and the clarity is quite good for vocals as well. Female vocals are a bit more pronounced than male vocals. I don’t find them harsh or sibilant even at louder volumes. The midrange is pretty nicely done, although could be a bit more clean with a little more control in the lower end.
Treble:-
The Treble response is nicely done, it’s smooth, it’s detailed, it’s crisp. I won’t say that the pair has strong extension in the lower end, but it does a great job in delivering a smooth, detailed presentation with no noticeable harshness or sibilance. The pair also has good air that presents a clean staging even in busy tracks.
Soundstage, Layering, Instrument Separation, Dynamics:-
Rinko has a decently wide soundstage, with a good amount of air, the pair sounds quite open and expansive. With the Surround effect of PS5, this was just a super amazing theatrical experience. I used to play god of war Ragnarok and Horizon Zero Dawn and the experience was simply sublime. The soundstage, the surround effect, and the overall experience are pretty solid!!
Short Comparison With Simgot EA500:-
Simgot EA500 is one of my favorite sets around the 100$ price bracket. The pair sounds natural and wonderful. Here’s a short comparison between Rinko and EA500.
>Rinko has a strong lower-end, much stronger than the EA500.
>EA500 sounds more natural tonally and timbre-wise, Rinko sounds warmer.
>Rinko has a more pronounced sound, it sounds more lively and immersive.
>EA500 has a more musical presentation.
>Rinko is an IEM that produces a strong V-shape profile producing a more fun signature.
Teardown Time!!!
Okay so now being done with the review, I am going to share my teardown experience with your guys. This is my first teardown and I absolutely loved every bit of it. Just a short piece of information before I begin, I took help from a friend of mine who is proficient in modding. He has done many different earbuds and IEM mods before(like MMCX mod on earbuds, repairing mmcx/2-pin connectors, etc). So I would like to thank my dear friend for helping me out here.
Now on to the teardown, the pair opens up easily with its face cover glued onto the shell. Upon opening, the first thing we see are two wires going from the 2-pin connectors to the frequency crossover board. The frequency board is quite delicate and needed to be handled with care, it is directly connected to the drivers. The drivers here are stuck together.
There’s a big casing that houses a slightly beveled shape diaphragm with a vertical copper coil. This is I guess the dynamic driver unit. It has a single magnet attached to it on the backside. Right next to this driver towards the ear nozzle is a smaller driver unit which is stuck to the bigger casing. This is the controversial planar magnetic driver unit. This one uses a diaphragm similar to the dynamic driver unit but instead of a vertical copper coil, this one has a coil that is embedded right into the diaphragm. From my small understanding of these drivers, Planar Magnetic drivers are units that use flat diaphragms with the coil embedded into them, the same is there on this unit. There are two magnets, one on each side of this diaphragm.
Now on to my mistake here, upon trying to open the casing of the planar unit, I actually put in some extra force that broke the casing of the driver unit. So the left side of my Rinko is now planar-less lol. But I am just happy to learn this new thing. I wish to do more teardowns in the upcoming future and learn more about this. Actually teardown was interesting, it was fun doing it with a close friend. But yeah feeling sad that the unit got damaged. Now I will have to purchase a unit for PS5 lol.
Final Words:-
There are a lot of things going around for the See Audio x Z Reviews Rinko, I find the pair to have an amazing sound experience. In fact before going bad, this was the pair that I have enjoyed hours of gaming with. It’s also quite good for music, loved listening to fast genres such as hip-hop, EDM, regional Bollywood, and other regional genres as well. Rinko actually has a lively, fun sound that is pretty solid for everyday enjoyment!! Now going to get another one for me!!
A Short Disclaimer Before I Begin:
The See Audio x Z Reviews Rinko was sent to me as a review sample from HiFiGo. There is no monetary benefit involved in this review, I would like to thank HiFiGo for providing me with this sample unit. I have enjoyed a good two-week period with the set, and now the set is actually not working for me as I messed up during the tear down(actually broke the planar shell for the left side driver unit). But the teardown and my review are complete that’s the good thing here. At the time of this writeup the unit retails for 99.99$, you can go and check out more information on the HiFiGo page below(It’s a non-affiliated link).
https://hifigo.com/products/seeaudio-x-z-review-rinko
About See Audio x Z Reviews Rinko:-
As I mentioned above, Rinko is a collaboration between See Audio and Z Reviews. It’s a dual-driver hybrid set of IEMs featuring a dynamic driver and a micro planar driver unit as advertised by the brand. The pair has attractive pricing and comes with a beautiful waifu designer box package. That’s almost everything that everyone knows now, let’s begin directly with the unboxing experience for the set.
Unboxing The Rinko:-
See Audio makes good packages for their IEMs. I was so in love with their Yume II package design, it looked so beautiful. The Package of Rinko has a designer look with waifu design right on the slip-on cover. On the back, we have the technical details and another image of the waifu. They have named this waifu Rinko(as evident from their keycap set as well). I have also got a stander of Rinko, which is a good-looking designer item(my wife has already called her dibs on this stander). Inside we have everything we need to get going including the pair itself, a 3.5mm terminated 2-pin cable, three pairs of new silicone-foam hybrid ear tips, a carry case, and a user guide. There’s also a cardboard-style stander inside the package with the Rinko waifu image exactly as we have on the front of the slip-on cover. Too much waifu in the package!!! But overall a good experience for unboxing a 100$ set. The new Eartips are quite good, will share more about them in the design and build quality part.
Package Contents:-
>Rinko IEMs.
>3.5mm terminated 2-pin cable.
>Three pairs of New Render Ear tips.
>Carry Case.
>Cardboard stander.
>User Guide.
Design & Build Quality:-
The pair is pretty well-built. It has a unique 3D beveled shape with metallic face covers. The inner cavity reminds me of Moondrop Variations with its semi-translucent black-colored look. We have Zeos engraved on the side of both earpieces. The pair looks and feels amazing in hand. Rinko has a single air vent present right underneath the Zeos engraving on the side. The pair has a lightweight design, it sits firmly into my ears and serves me well with a comfortable fit and good isolation.
The included cable is a generic stock cable. It’s soft, has 2-pin connectors, and has a 3.5mm termination. Rinko comes with new Render Ear Tips. They are a blend of silicone and memory foam with foam filled in between the silicone tube and silicone outer layer. They are quite good and I personally like them with the Rinko.
Driving The Rinko:-
Rinko is an easy-to-drive pair, it works well enough straight out of my Sony WM1A. Heck, it’s so easy to power that it works well with my PS5 controller as well. I have used the pair extensively for gaming with my PS5. So don’t worry about driving the set, it works well off with basic sources.
Sound Impressions:-
Rinko packs a powerful and fun sound signature. It has a strong lower-end response, delivering a powerful sub-bass rumble and a strong mid-bass response. It is borderline basshead for my taste and that’s why I find it perfect for watching movies and enjoying some video games. I hooked it into my PS5 and was literally amazed by its outstanding theatrical sound feeling. It benefits from the surround sound of the PS5 and delivers an expansive soundstage with crisp bass. Lower-end is probably the highlight of the set for me. The bass is so strong that it sometimes comes over the lower mids as well, Upper mids sound clean and accurate. They have crisp clarity for vocals and instruments. Treble is also nicely done on the Rinko, it sounds clean and sibilance free.
Lower-End:-
As mentioned earlier, the Rinko has an emphasized lower-end response. It has a fast, quick, punchy lower-end response that complements genres such as hip-hop, EDM, etc. The lower-end clarity is quite refined and well-textured. Love the rumble it produces while watching movies and playing games. Personally loved watching Interstellar, the bgm sounded so lively and created a different aura with its strong lower end. I must add, this is the borderline bass response I can enjoy, anything above this would be overwhelming atleast for me.
Midrange:-
Even though the strong mid-bass reaches for the lower mids every now and then, the pair maintains a clean midrange most of the time. The instruments are well-separated, and the clarity is quite good for vocals as well. Female vocals are a bit more pronounced than male vocals. I don’t find them harsh or sibilant even at louder volumes. The midrange is pretty nicely done, although could be a bit more clean with a little more control in the lower end.
Treble:-
The Treble response is nicely done, it’s smooth, it’s detailed, it’s crisp. I won’t say that the pair has strong extension in the lower end, but it does a great job in delivering a smooth, detailed presentation with no noticeable harshness or sibilance. The pair also has good air that presents a clean staging even in busy tracks.
Soundstage, Layering, Instrument Separation, Dynamics:-
Rinko has a decently wide soundstage, with a good amount of air, the pair sounds quite open and expansive. With the Surround effect of PS5, this was just a super amazing theatrical experience. I used to play god of war Ragnarok and Horizon Zero Dawn and the experience was simply sublime. The soundstage, the surround effect, and the overall experience are pretty solid!!
Short Comparison With Simgot EA500:-
Simgot EA500 is one of my favorite sets around the 100$ price bracket. The pair sounds natural and wonderful. Here’s a short comparison between Rinko and EA500.
>Rinko has a strong lower-end, much stronger than the EA500.
>EA500 sounds more natural tonally and timbre-wise, Rinko sounds warmer.
>Rinko has a more pronounced sound, it sounds more lively and immersive.
>EA500 has a more musical presentation.
>Rinko is an IEM that produces a strong V-shape profile producing a more fun signature.
Teardown Time!!!
Okay so now being done with the review, I am going to share my teardown experience with your guys. This is my first teardown and I absolutely loved every bit of it. Just a short piece of information before I begin, I took help from a friend of mine who is proficient in modding. He has done many different earbuds and IEM mods before(like MMCX mod on earbuds, repairing mmcx/2-pin connectors, etc). So I would like to thank my dear friend for helping me out here.
Now on to the teardown, the pair opens up easily with its face cover glued onto the shell. Upon opening, the first thing we see are two wires going from the 2-pin connectors to the frequency crossover board. The frequency board is quite delicate and needed to be handled with care, it is directly connected to the drivers. The drivers here are stuck together.
There’s a big casing that houses a slightly beveled shape diaphragm with a vertical copper coil. This is I guess the dynamic driver unit. It has a single magnet attached to it on the backside. Right next to this driver towards the ear nozzle is a smaller driver unit which is stuck to the bigger casing. This is the controversial planar magnetic driver unit. This one uses a diaphragm similar to the dynamic driver unit but instead of a vertical copper coil, this one has a coil that is embedded right into the diaphragm. From my small understanding of these drivers, Planar Magnetic drivers are units that use flat diaphragms with the coil embedded into them, the same is there on this unit. There are two magnets, one on each side of this diaphragm.
Now on to my mistake here, upon trying to open the casing of the planar unit, I actually put in some extra force that broke the casing of the driver unit. So the left side of my Rinko is now planar-less lol. But I am just happy to learn this new thing. I wish to do more teardowns in the upcoming future and learn more about this. Actually teardown was interesting, it was fun doing it with a close friend. But yeah feeling sad that the unit got damaged. Now I will have to purchase a unit for PS5 lol.
Final Words:-
There are a lot of things going around for the See Audio x Z Reviews Rinko, I find the pair to have an amazing sound experience. In fact before going bad, this was the pair that I have enjoyed hours of gaming with. It’s also quite good for music, loved listening to fast genres such as hip-hop, EDM, regional Bollywood, and other regional genres as well. Rinko actually has a lively, fun sound that is pretty solid for everyday enjoyment!! Now going to get another one for me!!
General/Build/Comfort/Packaging
Rinko is SeeAudio’s first collaboration with Zeos, who’s the popular youtuber/reviewer. If you have been following Zeos for a little while, you will/should know his library’s preference, in which directly reflects to the tuning of Rinko, if you’re not a fan of his library, perhaps you may skip this review , but if you’re curious to find out how it sounds, read on!
The shell is 3D printed and very light, it has got the matte finishing with Zeos’s wording on the shell. I have no issue with the comfort throughout my listening session with Rinko which lasted roughly 3-4 hours, packaging wise, the box is the usual “waifu” printing, it came with a IEM storage case which is the same as the one found in their Yume II, three pairs of ear tips based on Zeos’s recommendation/selection. The cable is alright to me, thin and slightly prone to tangle, other than that, nothing much to comment on the packaging as it’s fairly standard.
Gears used for this review
- Earmen Angel Dac/Amp
- Xduoo XP-2Bal
- Xduoo XA-10
- iFi Gryphon
- Macbook Air M2 3.5 Out
- Hidizs S9 Pro Copper Edition
- iPod Touch 5th Gen
- Rinko with stock eartips and stock cable
My review is solely based on what I hear via my equipment and I never consider my reviews to be objective in any way rather a subjective approach. Do take into consideration that everyone’s ear anatomy is not the same, so the psychoacoustics perception might be different as well, but i believe it will not stray too far
Sound Impression
Rinko is another fun set that isn’t following the harman curve but tuned to be a fun sounding set emphasising on the bass. In terms of sound profile on stock cable and eartips, they are V shaped sounding to my ears, mids are a little recessed, bass and treble emphasised. Slight planar timbre is audible, tonality wise Rinko is leaning towards slight cool rather than warm. Note weight is somewhat lean with the stock tips.
Bass
- Bass is being emphasised here and this is Rinko’s main focus i believe, all about the bass
- Rinko’s bass is focusing more on mid bass so the punch is harder than the rumble
- Sub bass rumble has adequate rumble and transition nicely into the mid bass
- Rinko response very well to various eartips, depending on the eartips of your choice, the bass can be tight and clean to boomy, the stock tips that came with it is rather balanced
- Mids are slightly recessed but the details in this range still present themselves adequately
- Female vocal is slightly more forward compared to male vocal, texture is adequate
- Male vocal is slightly recessed, some artist’s vocal tend to be recessed while some are forward, one example when i’m listening to Michael Jackson’s track, his voice sounded recessed while Jason Mraz’s voice sounded forward
- The gain on the upper mids is evident that it favours female vocal more than male’s, if you are listening to J-Pop with female artist, you might like Rinko
- Treble is lively and energetic, but not offensive at the same time
- Detail retrieval is alright, nuances can be heard without much effort
- Non sibilant
- Good amount of air leading to good perceived sense of space
- Soundstage is slightly out of your head, average depth and width, slightly lacking in terms of height
- Imaging is good, instruments can be pinpointed easily even on complex tracks such as Metallica’s Lux Aeterna, Slipknot’s People = crap!
- Rinko is easy to drive, reaching my usual listening volume without any efforts on Apple’s Lightning Dongle
- Having said that, it does scale with source and power, source will affect the overall presentation in terms of soundstage and dynamics (based on my own listening experience)
- Feeding it with more power (Gain+ on Earmen Angel), more dynamics, mid range somehow comes forward a little, bass has better control (tighter)
- In terms of tuning, both are different and the difference is day and night
- Legato has the vintage kind of sound, speaker like sound, if you have any experience with vintage speakers, you’ll understand. Rinko is more modern sounding, irrelevant but something like digital vs analog
- Rinko is mid bass focused whereas Legato is more on the sub bass which the rumble is literally felt by your jaws and transitions nicely into the mid bass
- Mids on both are slightly recessed but Legato does in better in terms of vocals for both female and male, whereas Rinko tends to favours female vocal more than male vocal
- Treble on the Rinko is more energetic compared to Legato, but both aren’t offensive nor sibilant
- Soundstage for Legato gives a different perceived feel compared to Rinko, Legato has got the atmospheric kind of staging whereas Rinko just sounds flat despite it does give you the sense of slightly out of your head
- With all that being said, it’s not to say that either one is bad but it depends on your preference
There have been too many harman target tuned IEMs in the Chi-Fi’s space, of course there are some who enjoy it and some who don't. Rinko is a refreshing addition to the market for those who don’t like harman target tuned IEMs. I don’t consider Rinko as an all rounder due to how it’s tuned, you might get away with it if you’re willing to spend some time cable rolling (That is if you believe in cable, not going to argue more and just leave it here) and tips rolling. Do I recommend Rinko? Yes, if your library mainly consists of modern music and especially jpops, if you’re into classicals and instruments, Rinko is not for you. Period.
*This sample is sent over by HifiGo in exchange for this review. I thank them for the opportunity.
Head over to the following links(Non Affiliated) if you’re interested in getting one yourself:
HifiGo’s Aliexpress Store
HifiGo’s Amazon US Store
HifiGo’s Amazon JP Store
HifiGo’s online webstore
The SeeAudio Rinko was sent to me by Hifigo in exchange for a review. No incentive was given and all the opinions are my own. The final score is also based on their value for money rather than sheer performance.
The SeeAudio Rinko IEMs is a new collaboration between SeeAudio and Z Reviews featuring 1 dynamic driver and 1 planar driver, coming in at $99.
Build and accessories:
The IEMs are built with plastic, which makes them lightweight and comfortable to wear for extended periods. Despite their plastic build, they do not feel flimsy and are likely to withstand regular use. The case that comes with them is of good quality and should protect the IEMs well.
The stock eartips, however, are not a good match for me and in my view for the IEMs themselves. Comfort aside, they caused the bass to bleed into the midrange and pushed the treble to become harsh and unpleasant.
The stock cable is lightweight but feels a bit cheap, and it remains to be seen how durable it is in the long run. However, considering the price, I'd say it's about on par with most other offerings.
Sound:
When it comes to sound quality, the SeeAudio Rinko IEMs are tuned for a fun V-shaped sound signature. Bass is definitely what is the star of the show here.
The bass on the Rinko is relatively quick and provides a satisfying amount of slam. It does make it a very fun and engaging listen, however, there is some bleeding into the midrange, which can result in a slightly muffled sound overall.
The midrange is hit or miss, they don't have a natural presentation of real instruments or vocals. They tend to add this strange sense of volume and extra layering over the instruments, which while interesting feels quite artificial and gets a bit tiring over time.
The highs on the Rinko IEMs can be a bit tricky. When paired with the right eartips, they are non-offensive and generally ride the line of being too north of neutral yet not crossing it. However, with the wrong tips (like the stock ones), they can become harsh and unpleasant. This means that finding the right tips is crucial to get an optimal treble response. I personally settled on the Acoustune AET08.
Final thoughts:
Overall, the SeeAudio Rinko IEMs offer a fun and enjoyable listening experience for those who prioritize a V-shaped sound signature over a more natural presentation. While they may not be the most accurate IEMs out there, they provide good value for the price and are a decent option for those on a budget.
Rinko Drivers:
Since there was some controversy about Rinko drivers I decided to tear down my unit to see how it looks inside. From the back you can only see the back of the dynamic driver:
Once the driver is removed, you can see that there is indeed a planar driver inside, it's very small, but definitely has a structure of a planar rather than a dynamic, which matches the patent and the explanation given by SeeAudio.
Dynamic in more detail:
Planar Diaphragm:
You can clearly see the coils run parallel to the diagram acting like traces. It's not conventional but it does achieve the same result as traces in this case.
Aeonyx
These would look great with one of those Viking Weave Cables I've heard so much about.
Chubby Checkers the Twist is a fun dancing song that makes me want to dance and feel good. I remember a time when my Mom and I did a little dance in the kitchen, and it was a beautiful moment. Not to mention it's a classic perfect song chalked with mostly good memories. It’s a song that is dear to my heart. It makes me want to dance, and feel great about life.
I bought this iem with my own money. My opinions are my own. We’ll talk about the twist in the summary.
You can buy this on Amazon, and soon on Hifigo. This links are links are unaffiliated.
I was looking forward to the Rinko. It’s an affordable set. I love my z12 and think it is very strong and fun. SeeAudio has had some solid products as of late with the TANGZU X SeeAudio being a reasonable set that has a beautiful shell, and the Yume 2 which is a major benchmark for me.
Product Features
Song Choice: Tidal list here:
I listen to a wide variety of music. I pick the songs because of various reasons. But I picture myself locked away like Andy Dufresne from Shawshank blasting music and shut off from the world. It’s a blissful image.
The Marriage of Figaro -The opera song from Shawshank Redemption, terrible recording but fun and gets me in the mood to listen to music.
O mio Babino caro -This is a modern less operatic version but a song with great female vocals.
Video Rigoletto - “La donna e mobile” Sung by one of the three Tenors, great song for high-performing male vocals. Pavarotti is the greatest classic singer maybe ever. Fight me!
Iron man - The sound at the beginning is hard to make sound great, great drums, and cymbals, and if done right it feels like an old-school band.
I Will Survive (1981 recording, I like her voice, and the old vocals, the drums, and various natural instruments really make this a favorite for me.
There is a light That never goes out - Smiths ( A classic, I just love it. It’s mellow, and I can tell a lot of the tuning if this song is done right.)
Jump (I like how the sound effects are in this!)
Star Child Someone recommended this song to me, and I like how funky it sounds and has nice vocals and a mix of music and things going on.
Dicke Titten Ramstein The beginning is amazing and the bass hits hard. Great song. I love rock and metal. The German language fascinates me.
Master of Puppets: Very fast song. Helps me determine if the driver can keep up.
Shell - It’s very boring. Black shell. Overall this shell is a disappointment, as I didn’t find that it fit well, nor did I find it unique or fun.
Case- The Case is nice. Same case as the Yume 2. I have no problems with the case, and find that it adds value to the package.
Tip Selection - Its tip selection is Limited and only has 3 sets of tips included with it. I look at 20 dollar sets and find they have 6 or 7 sets with them, and I just feel this isn’t enough for a 100-dollar iem. I had to use tips from other iems, to get a good fit for myself. Not sure if this is a zeos or Seeaudio decision, but it's a very poor decision and will ruin this delightful iem for others. I am fancy, I tip rolled, but that saved this iem for me.
Comparison: I thought this was going to be a Legato, but with a Waifu and more resolving, it was not. I find it sonically a strong value comparison at this price range if you want a V-shaped iem. The Z12 will often go on sale for 135 and has an amazing cable (60 dollar cable) vs the cable in the Rinko feels about a 20 dollar cable.
Value: I don’t see a lot of value in this product. For those that really value the V-shaped iems, it could be good. Maybe you really want a v shaped iem, but can't wait for a z12 or have shortages in your country. I can’t recommend it to a friend. I couldn’t really gift it to anyone, knowing that other sets exist. Maybe giving it to Weeb friend, but I’d rather give them a cheaper iem and a few gift cards.
Sound: I just found it to be extremely shouty, and my music didn’t sound good on it. It got 3000% better when I added new tips. The stock tips didn’t work well for me at all. It was night and day.
This graph is brought to you by Hobby Talk. I find him very honest, fun, fair, and I 100% recommend him. He has a great unboxing for this if you are interested. (Unboxing here)
It was like a cheaper z12 in many ways. Cheaper cable, cheaper shell, and if you are like me those are the two most important things coming out of the box. The money in this goes to the Wafuu, not the presentation of the iem as a whole. If you want the Wafuu, or to Support Z reviews, get it. If you want an iem that sounds good with a similar V Shaped tuned, I’d go with the Z12 on sale.
Pairing: I used a Quidelix 5k and a Topping DX1 dac through an SMSL SH-8s AMP. I don’t find the pairing to matter too much, but it certainly can.
Summary- 100 is a tough point. Legato is a very fun sound that is at the same price and has a better package overall, and a much-improved sound. The package of the Legato is just smooth and fun, as is the sound. The iem is finicky, definitely try a few things before hating on this oddly packaged iem. It’s a solid pick, just not for me. I like SeeAudio, I like Zreviews, heck I even like Waifus, but I do not like this iem for music set but I could live with it. You go into an iem thinking it’s going to be great, and technical, but there is a twist: it’s just a 50-dollar set, with a waifu, in the Yume 2 box. Like an ice cream cone, it has some dark and some light. It should have added a keycap to the box, a prettier color to the iem, and had a pink cable. Lost opportunities. Now I’m going to enjoy some Icecream.
Thanks for reading. Any feedback is welcome. I’ll be posting my preference list of iems, dacs, and headphones soon. It’s in process.
I bought this iem with my own money. My opinions are my own. We’ll talk about the twist in the summary.
You can buy this on Amazon, and soon on Hifigo. This links are links are unaffiliated.
I was looking forward to the Rinko. It’s an affordable set. I love my z12 and think it is very strong and fun. SeeAudio has had some solid products as of late with the TANGZU X SeeAudio being a reasonable set that has a beautiful shell, and the Yume 2 which is a major benchmark for me.
Product Features
Song Choice: Tidal list here:
I listen to a wide variety of music. I pick the songs because of various reasons. But I picture myself locked away like Andy Dufresne from Shawshank blasting music and shut off from the world. It’s a blissful image.
The Marriage of Figaro -The opera song from Shawshank Redemption, terrible recording but fun and gets me in the mood to listen to music.
O mio Babino caro -This is a modern less operatic version but a song with great female vocals.
Video Rigoletto - “La donna e mobile” Sung by one of the three Tenors, great song for high-performing male vocals. Pavarotti is the greatest classic singer maybe ever. Fight me!
Iron man - The sound at the beginning is hard to make sound great, great drums, and cymbals, and if done right it feels like an old-school band.
I Will Survive (1981 recording, I like her voice, and the old vocals, the drums, and various natural instruments really make this a favorite for me.
There is a light That never goes out - Smiths ( A classic, I just love it. It’s mellow, and I can tell a lot of the tuning if this song is done right.)
Jump (I like how the sound effects are in this!)
Star Child Someone recommended this song to me, and I like how funky it sounds and has nice vocals and a mix of music and things going on.
Dicke Titten Ramstein The beginning is amazing and the bass hits hard. Great song. I love rock and metal. The German language fascinates me.
Master of Puppets: Very fast song. Helps me determine if the driver can keep up.
Shell - It’s very boring. Black shell. Overall this shell is a disappointment, as I didn’t find that it fit well, nor did I find it unique or fun.
Case- The Case is nice. Same case as the Yume 2. I have no problems with the case, and find that it adds value to the package.
Tip Selection - Its tip selection is Limited and only has 3 sets of tips included with it. I look at 20 dollar sets and find they have 6 or 7 sets with them, and I just feel this isn’t enough for a 100-dollar iem. I had to use tips from other iems, to get a good fit for myself. Not sure if this is a zeos or Seeaudio decision, but it's a very poor decision and will ruin this delightful iem for others. I am fancy, I tip rolled, but that saved this iem for me.
Comparison: I thought this was going to be a Legato, but with a Waifu and more resolving, it was not. I find it sonically a strong value comparison at this price range if you want a V-shaped iem. The Z12 will often go on sale for 135 and has an amazing cable (60 dollar cable) vs the cable in the Rinko feels about a 20 dollar cable.
Value: I don’t see a lot of value in this product. For those that really value the V-shaped iems, it could be good. Maybe you really want a v shaped iem, but can't wait for a z12 or have shortages in your country. I can’t recommend it to a friend. I couldn’t really gift it to anyone, knowing that other sets exist. Maybe giving it to Weeb friend, but I’d rather give them a cheaper iem and a few gift cards.
Sound: I just found it to be extremely shouty, and my music didn’t sound good on it. It got 3000% better when I added new tips. The stock tips didn’t work well for me at all. It was night and day.
This graph is brought to you by Hobby Talk. I find him very honest, fun, fair, and I 100% recommend him. He has a great unboxing for this if you are interested. (Unboxing here)
It was like a cheaper z12 in many ways. Cheaper cable, cheaper shell, and if you are like me those are the two most important things coming out of the box. The money in this goes to the Wafuu, not the presentation of the iem as a whole. If you want the Wafuu, or to Support Z reviews, get it. If you want an iem that sounds good with a similar V Shaped tuned, I’d go with the Z12 on sale.
Pairing: I used a Quidelix 5k and a Topping DX1 dac through an SMSL SH-8s AMP. I don’t find the pairing to matter too much, but it certainly can.
Summary- 100 is a tough point. Legato is a very fun sound that is at the same price and has a better package overall, and a much-improved sound. The package of the Legato is just smooth and fun, as is the sound. The iem is finicky, definitely try a few things before hating on this oddly packaged iem. It’s a solid pick, just not for me. I like SeeAudio, I like Zreviews, heck I even like Waifus, but I do not like this iem for music set but I could live with it. You go into an iem thinking it’s going to be great, and technical, but there is a twist: it’s just a 50-dollar set, with a waifu, in the Yume 2 box. Like an ice cream cone, it has some dark and some light. It should have added a keycap to the box, a prettier color to the iem, and had a pink cable. Lost opportunities. Now I’m going to enjoy some Icecream.
Thanks for reading. Any feedback is welcome. I’ll be posting my preference list of iems, dacs, and headphones soon. It’s in process.
SeeAudio Rinko is a bold and daring contender for the need for energetic, vibrant and bassy sound indulgences. As simple as that. Not intended to be adept at some music genres, but it does amazingly well with modern type of music that entail lots of groove and vibe.
Fairly good technically, Rinko is only held back by less than wide soundstage, while at the same time somehow managed to impart surprisingly good holographic spatial staging with precise imaging even when used to listen to Binaural type of music - even for gaming.
Get Rinko if you hgave craving for solid Midbass performances, backed by equally smooth and seismically groovy Subbass.
Full Review on my YouTube Channel:
SeeAudio Rinko will soon be released on HiFiGo:
AliExpress: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/3256805212259957.html
Amazon US： https://amazon.com/dp/B0BZ3Y6DGG/seeaudio+rinko/
Amazon JP： https://www.amazon.co.jp/dp/B0BZ3ZST41/seeaudio+rinko/
HiFiGo Web：https://hifigo.com/products/seeaudio-x-z-review-rinko
